Days
by BlueberryToasterTart
Summary: A short drabble organized into days that follows How to Train Your Dragon 2. With Hiccup busy with being chief, Astrid is spending more time with their newest dragon rider.
1. Chapter 1

Don't hate me, but I had this story floating around in my head and I had to nail it down before it either floated away or exploded. Enjoy!

Day 1

Since Hiccup was made chief he'd been busy. Toothless could be seen flying here and there all over the island from morning until night. When he got the time he would stop by the smithy to make improvements or tweaks on his flight suit or to Toothless's tail.

It was just past the midday meal when Astrid saw the legendary night fury land close to the smithy. She quickly made her way from the mead hall to catch Hiccup before he vanished for whatever duty called.

"Hiccup?" Astrid called.

"In here." Hiccup responded. He spoke in the same monotone to everyone these days. He'd lost that excited luster whenever he talked about new additions to his suit or to the tail.

"Hungry? You missed lunch." Astrid asked. She came around to his work bench. He was fidgeting with a prototype.

"Not really." Hiccup shook his head.

Astrid waited for a moment to see if he'd look up or at least acknowledge her. When he didn't she sighed, "What are you working on?"

"It's uh, just an update on the suspension in the tail." Hiccup said. His attention was divided and most of it was on the tail.

"That's…neat." Astrid said.

"Chief!" came a Viking's worried cry from the village.

"I'll see you later." Hiccup set down the tail and rushed passed her and into the village.

Astrid stood there a moment before walking back outside. Hiccup and Toothless were up in the air again and following some chattering Viking on a monstrous nightmare.

"He's been busy lately." Eret came over to stand by Astrid.

"Tell me about it." Astrid groaned. "I haven't seen him when he wasn't half asleep or distracted."

"That's why I'm never upset to not be in charge." Eret shrugged. When Astrid raised a brow he added, "I like the power but not the responsibility."

"Really? You giving up the chance to be in charge?" Astrid laughed.

"Hey, half the men on that ship couldn't count higher than ten without taking their shoes off." Eret defended.

"And the other half?" Astrid mused.

"The other have couldn't even count to ten." Eret shook his head. "Numbskulls couldn't have done anything without me. I'd gladly have let someone run that ship if they were smarter than the average sea urchin."

Astrid laughed.

Eret groaned, "I know that I'm new when it comes to dragons but being in classes with the little kids makes me feel like a fool."

The arena was occupied most of the day with dragon training classes for both Vikings and dragons. Eret and his men had been put into those classes along with the younger Vikings.

"Couldn't we just skip the book stuff and jump right into the hands-on?" Eret asked. "That's how you lot learned, right?"

"Yeah." Astrid nodded. "But it wasn't easy."

"That's fine. I like a good challenge." Eret said.

Astrid watched him put on a tough poise. She laughed. Eret was intelligent like Hiccup but a buffoon like Snotlout. And he had just enough crazy to get along with the twins.

"Alright, how about some hands-on on Dragon Island?" Astrid asked. It wasn't like there was anything better to do and she hadn't been off Berk in weeks. "There are plenty of wild dragons there."

"Right." Eret nodded.

The two of them flew out from Berk and to Dragon Island. They left Stormfly and Skullcrusher to stay on the beach as they made their way inland.

"Why are we leaving the dragons?" Eret asked. He kept looking over his shoulder to where they dragons were soaking up their vacation time by basking in the bright sun.

"Because they'll try and protect us. If you want to really learn about dragons you can't have Skullcrusher scaring them away." Astrid said. "To get closer to the dragons they need to see you and only you."

"Right." Eret nodded.

The first dragons they came across were gnockles.

"Go on." Astrid said. "We learned by diving in head first."

"Just like that? Just walk up to it?" Eret said.

Astrid nodded. "Gnockles are tough and hearty and protective of each other. But they are also soft and mushy on the inside. Kind of like Fishlegs. And all dragons love dragons nip."

Astrid stood back and let Eret learn on his own as they had. She only added bits of advice when he really needed it. She yelled at him to dodge a lava blast but that was the worst of the day. The rest of it was spent in trial and error. At the end of the afternoon he had successfully gotten close enough to a gronkle to touch it without getting his hand bitten off. They weren't attacking him but that was about it.

"Okay, we'll pick this up tomorrow." Astrid called.

"Oh, come on, another hour and I'll have him doing cartwheels." Eret said.

"I'm hungry and tired." Astrid called as she started walking toward the beach. "And I know you are too, let's go."

They flew back and landed on Berk just after nightfall. They let the dragons go to the stables to eat and sleep while they meandered toward the mead hall for a late dinner. If they were lucky there would still be warm stew.

"Oh, there you two are." Gobber met them on his way out.

"We were on Dragon Island." Eret said.

"Training." Astrid added.

"Ah, I see." Gobber nodded with a quizzical stare between them. He limped down the mead hall stairs.

"What was that?" Eret asked. He eyed Gobber as he walked away.

Astrid shrugged and followed the warm smells of food inside. Hiccup was finishing and passed them on his way out.

"Hey," Hiccup said as he put a hand on Astrid's arm and squeezed as he walked passed them.

"Hey," Astrid said, but he was always through the doors.

Eret didn't say anything but he looked at the floor and fidgeted his hands. He cleared his throat as Astrid shrugged it off.

That's the first chapter. This won't be a long one but I decided that putting it in installments of days might work better than just flooding it all out at once. What do you think? Slide some reviews me way!


	2. Chapter 2

Day 2

Astrid greeted Stormfly first thing in the morning. She poked her head in through the window and chirped as Astrid hugged the horn on her nose.

"Hey there, girl." Astrid yawned as she let go.

Astrid stretched as Stormfly removed her head from the window. In the view she could see Hiccup vanish into the smithy. She whistled to Stormfly who quickly returned, wide yellow eyes alert and wings poised to take flight. Astrid jumped from her window and with Stormfly's help she landed safely on the ground below. She ran toward the smithy in hopes that Hiccup was still there.

"Hey, Hiccup." Astrid said as she slowed to a walk to casually enter the smithy. The heat from the forge hit her and pushed her back a step.

"Hey, Astrid." Hiccup said. He was looking at the iron he'd put over the white hot dragon lava.

"You working on the tail?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah." Hiccup answered.

Astrid took those that step that he head had taken from her. The heat was more than uncomfortable. It was like her face was on fire. How could Hiccup stand being in this horrible heat for hours at a time?

She looked over his shoulder at the iron in the forge. There were drawings on the table but she couldn't understand his scribbles. Hiccup was staring into the fire without an expression.

"So what is it you're doing to it?" Astrid asked.

"I'm modifying the self-sustaining mechanism." Hiccup said in a careful tone as he turned the heating iron.

He was talking in that distracted tone again. Astrid admired his ambition and dedication to his work. He always lost himself in his work but it hadn't bothered her until recently.

"So…?" Astrid asked. His short explanation hadn't explained anything.

"I want Toothless to maintain steady flight without me but also to be able to maneuver easier in the air. With the new tail his maneuverability will increase by allowing him to control the tail's position."

"Oh," Astrid nodded.

Hiccup swallowed a yawn. She looked over his shoulder again but she was looking at his face instead of the fire. It could have been the radiating heat of the forge playing tricks with the shadows of the smithy but the darkness underneath his eyes didn't look normal. His words were bland and rushed together, a bit grumbled, like his was speaking thought by thought.

"Are you feeling okay?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah, why?" Hiccup asked. He stirred the coals and tiny burning embers floated upward on the bubbles of seething heat.

"You sound tired." Astrid said. She tried to look over his shoulder at his face. He was staring into the fire. The red hot flames reflected in his green eyes. She thought that if she kept looking at him he would turn his head to look back at her but he didn't.

"I'm good." Hiccup said after a moment. He didn't sound good.

"Oh, right. That's good to hear." Astrid said.

It was then that Gobber's early morning whistling broke the silence. He limped into the smithy and stopped his tune when he saw Hiccup and Astrid.

"Ah, getting an early start?" Gobber looked into the forge. He padded Hiccup on the shoulder as he walked inside. "Morning, Astrid. I hear the kids are looking forward to your lesson today."

"Oh, I bet." Astrid laughed. Today was her weekly turn to teach the dragon trainees. Since Hiccup's time was taken with being chief it was up to the other riders to teach the next generation. She focused on hand to hand, axe proficiency, and more than they could ever remember about the deadly nadder and sharp class dragons.

"Got something planned for today?" Gobber asked as he switched his hands.

"Yeah, I sure do." Astrid said. She crossed her arms. She'd planned a test to see how well they'd learned and retained her lessons.

The forge sizzled and crackled.

"Speaking of, I should probably go." Astrid said. She looked to Hiccup for some form of goodbye. When it didn't come she said a quick goodbye to Gobber and left the smithy.

She met Stormfly outside the smithy. It was strange how sometimes she knew just where to be. Astrid greeted her warmly as Stormfly nuzzled her. They arrived at the arena just as the students were filing in, looking as tired and soft as they could. So when Astrid announced that they were testing there was a group-wide groan.

She operated the test like a game. She paired them students up and the winner moved to the next round. Halfway through the allotted class time there were finally two left standing. The rest were sitting on the sidelines with bruised limbs and egos.

"There's only one winner." Astrid shouted.

The last two fought it out. Partway though the fight Astrid caught Eret appear over the arena. Skullcrusher loomed behind him like the intimidating beast that he was. When the fight came to a black and blue end Astrid congratulated the winner and let them all leave early. She followed them all out and waited outside the arena as Eret came around to meet her.

"You're quite the teacher." Eret said. "Did you teach them all of that?"

"Mostly." Astrid sighed. They'd started fighting lessons nearly two years ago. "When we started it was like teaching a whole class of Fishlegs."

Eret laughed. "So what about the real lesson?"

"Right, you ready for lesson number two?" Astrid said as she motioned for Stormfly. She chirped as she jumped to stand beside her.

They took off for Dragon Island.

Gobber watched Astrid and Stormfly fly off toward the arena. He looked between their fleeting backs and Hiccup's empty face. When the girl and her dragon were out of sight Gobber raised a boy at Hiccup.

"You alright there, Hiccup?" Gobber asked. He studied his face for a response.

Hiccup hesitated and then shook his head, "Yeah."

"Are you sure? I've seen Grump more with it than you." Gobber said. He'd left the useless lump of a dragon sleeping. He'd roll out of bed in an hour or so looking for Gobber. And he'd return to his snoozing when he found him. Gobber limped over to Hiccup and nudged him in the shoulder with his tong-hand.

Hiccup had to come-to in order to catch himself from stumbling backward. He stood back up straight and shook his head with an extended exhale. He blinked at the iron in the forge and then back at Gobber.

"What?" Hiccup asked.

"What do you mean 'what'?" Gobber asked.

Hiccup shrugged. He brushed the hair out of his face. "I'm sorry, I guess I'm just …exhausted."

Gobber _har-humped_. "I've seen you tired and this is more than just tired. Is something else eating you?"

"No, Gobber, I'm fine." Hiccup said. He sighed and left the iron to heat and sat down by the tables hat held his designs. He rubbed his face.

"I know that this whole chiefing thing is a mug full, I remember when your dad first became chief. He was so exhausted he fell asleep standing up, went face first to the floor." Gobber said. He sighed and set down. "I know it's hard and it'll take time to get used to, but don't forget your more than just a chief, Hiccup."

"What does that mean?" Hiccup asked.

"Uh, I'll let you figure that out. Trully, I don't know. Your father went through a thing and that's what he said to me when he came out of it. If you do figure it out come back and tell me. I'd like to know." Gobber stood up.

Gobber began to hum while he worked the forge. Hiccup stood, he could hear someone outside calling for him. His short rest was over.

That's day 2! Thanks for reading - it's been another day of submitting work to journals and that always tires me out.


	3. Chapter 3

Day 3

Stormfly chirped early; Astrid woke with the sudden sound. The dragon was poised in her window like a seabird.

"Good morning," Astrid yawned.

Stormfly squawked. It was the sound she made when she wanted Astrid to pay attention. She stretched on her way to the window. Stormfly jumped down to the ground and Astrid leaned outside. It was Eret that was down below, saying something to Skullcrusher, who was clawing at the ground.

"What are you doing here this early?" Astrid called down.

"I know it's early but I wanted to get a head start." Eret said.

"Alright, I'll be down in a minutes." Astrid waved as she pushed back from the window. She didn't have to be at the arena that day and after breakfast she'd have the rest of it to do whatever with.

And after a quick breakfast at the Great Hall, Eret and Astrid were heading for Dragon Island. Eret was getting along fantastically with the gronkles. His progress was astounding. It was much easier to teach when they knew what they were doing. They spent the morning with the gronkles and by the time the afternoon rolled around Astrid was sure he was ready for the next dragon.

"See? You're a natural." Astrid said.

"It's still hard to believe that all this time dragons were more than silly beasts." Eret said as he scratched a gronkle's chin.

"Yeah," Astrid said. While they went back to the beach for lunch Astrid told him about her dragon revelation when she'd flown with Hiccup for the first time. It was terrifying, thrilling, and ground shattering.

"I understand that." Eret said. "So Hiccup forced you to ride a dragon?"

"Uh, I wouldn't call it that." Astrid shrugged. She tried to explain the five year old situation but no matter how she phrased it she made herself sound thickheaded.

While they talked Stormfly and Skullcrusher lounged. Within the hour they had a fire roaring and fish roasting over the flames.

"I wouldn't have gotten on the back of a dragon on my own either." Eret said. Then he lightened his tone, "But I never thought about a dragon as a way to pick up women."

"Oh, you don't think that'd work with Ruffnut?" Astrid said in a serious voice. It was only after Eret's face contorted into confused disgust that she laughed.

"Oh, that's funny." Eret said. He scoffed. "I'd be flying as fast as I could away from the madwoman. Honestly, I don't know what Snotlout and Fishlegs see in her."

"I don't either." Astrid shrugged.

"Well, I suppose if she was the _only _female on the island…" Eret reasoned. "I've known men who'd go farther for intimacy."

"Intimacy?" Astrid asked. She put forth her best innocent face.

Eret coughed and his cheeks began to burn. He stuttered and looked everywhere but her. "Uh, it's…well, you know, it's like…when…you know…it's when two people…or three, if that's what you fancy, and…uh…they…do stuff…with each…other…"

Astrid laughed. "I'm kidding, I know what that means. I just wanted to hear you explain it."

Eret straightened up and his face burned red. He mumbled something under his breath and kicked the sand.

"So I take it you're no stranger to _intimacy_?" Astrid laughed. "Two or three? Is that what you're into? Sicko!"

"Hey, don't judge me." Eret said, grinning. "Seafaring is a hard life! And there are saloon girls that…specialized in relieving the stress harbored over months on a ship."

Astrid laughed. "I didn't peg you as the man whore."

"I am not." Eret laughed. "I just happen to enjoy the company of women I'll never see again."

"Oh, so Ruffnut is too frequent for you?" Astrid smiled.

"I'm a pirate at heart. I'm not meant for settling down. I'll always return to the seas and die out there someday." Eret shrugged. He sighed and looked over the fire at Astrid. "The whole marriage and kids thing isn't for me. But what about you? Looking forward to a life as a wife and mother?"

The question caught Astrid off guard. She struggled to find an answer. "Oh, well…as much as anyone I guess."

"Are you not?" Eret asked.

"No, I am. It's just…I still feel like a kid sometimes. When people talk about motherhood I just don't feel like I'm ready for it." Astrid said. "I mean, a baby. I don't know how to take care of another human being that can't do anything for itself. Does that make me selfish?"

"No." Eret said. "I'm not an expert, at all, but I don't think that anyone is ready to become a parent. But before that aren't you planning the wedding of the age? I hear the Vikings are all looking forward to a week-long celebration."

Astrid half-laughed and shook her head. "I don't know. I haven't had much time to talk to Hiccup about it. It's mostly been Valka and me talking weddings over dinner."

"Right, being chief is also one of those things I don't have much experience in." Eret shrugged. "Sounds exhausting though."

"You mean you aren't the chief of your dragon trapper ship?" Astrid raised a brow.

"Eh, none of the men on that ship can count past ten without taking off their shoes." Eret shook his head.

"So you were leader because you can?" Astrid laughed. "The least dumb?"

Eret tried not to laugh but he couldn't hold it in. He shook his head.

"So, you think you're ready to move past the gronkle?" Astrid asked. "There are plenty of other dragons out and about."

"Sure." Eret nodded.

They ate and put out the fire and headed back inland. It wasn't long until they came across a outcropping where a group of nadders were basking in the sun.

The sun was touching the waters when Hiccup caught a break. He went to the smithy and hid Toothless inside, hoping that it would buy him a few more moments of peace. It wasn't that he didn't want to help the village but more often than not he felt their problems were asinine. He sat down at his desk. There was several things he could be doing but he was too exhausted to work right now.

"Hiding out?" Gobber asked.

Hiccup jumped. He hadn't heard him walk in. "Yeah, I was just…catching my breath."

"Oh really?" Gobber said.

"Yeah," Hiccup nodded. Then he sighed. "Gobber, I haven't seen Astrid all day. She was at the Great Hall this morning with Eret but they left."

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about.' Gobber said. "She's been teaching him about dragons. I hear they've been flying off the Dragon Island for training."

"All day?" Hiccup asked. "Just the two of them?"

Gobber paused. "Oh, it's Astrid. It's not like anything is going to happen. Astrid's not that kind of girl and Eret isn't that devious."

Hiccup laughed. "You're right. Thanks, Gobber."

Right, there's the next day. Don't worry about me breaking Hiccstrid up, I've got this planned.


	4. Chapter 4

Day 4

Berk was rattled with a morning storm. Thunder rolled in the dark clouds and lightning seared and snapped. A vicious crack of thunder had shaken Astrid awake before dawn and the continuous racket had kept her from falling back to sleep. The dawn's light was blocked by the thick clouds and patchy showers. Knowing sleep was gone for the day she pushed herself from the bed.

From her window the village was nothing but blurs through the current downpour. A million raindrops thundered against rooftops; dragons would be grounded until it let up. She tried to squint through the rain to the smithy. She thought she could see a light but she wasn't sure. She might as well try to catch Hiccup before he got too busy.

It was useless to try and avoid the rain. There wouldn't be a dry Viking left on Berk by the end of breakfast. Stormfly was curled inside her roost and when Astrid tried to cajole her to come out she refused. That was fine. She was already wet from walking outside. She might as well walk to the smithy.

She followed the path through the village that she knew by heart and by the time she arrived at the smithy she was soaked to the bone. She ducked inside and was relieved to feel the powerful heat of the forge. It created something of a wall between the chilly Berk rain and the warmth inside the smithy.

Sure enough, Hiccup was sitting beside the forge. He had his little book of ideas open on his lap.

"Morning, Hiccup." Astrid said. She wrung out a splash of water from her hair.

"Hey, Astrid." Hiccup said as he scribbled something down.

"So what's on your agenda for the day?" Astrid asked.

"Oh, the usual. With a rainy twist." Hiccup sighed. He straightened up and let the pencil fall to the book's binding and closed it with a snap. He turned on his seat to face her. The reaction in his face was instant; he looked her up and down with an open mouth. "Wha-? Did you walk here?"

"Yes." Astrid nodded.

"You're going to get sick. Come here and sit." Hiccup motioned. He got up from his chair and pointed to it. She sat and he pulled a stool from his work bench and sat beside her.

"Stormfly wasn't having any of this weather." Astrid explained.

"Yeah, Toothless didn't want to leave the house either. I think he's still there. When this rain lifts he'll show up." Hiccup said. He glanced out into the heavy rain maybe to see if there was a black shape bounding through it.

"So I'm guessing there haven't been any major disasters yet." Astrid shrugged. When Hiccup looked blankly back at her she added, "You know, whenever it rains Berk starts to fall apart."

"Oh, right. Yeah. I'm waiting for someone to run through the village because their roof sprang a leak. I'm sure we'll be fixing more than just a couple by tomorrow." Hiccup groaned. He cleared his throat. "So, I hear that you're training Eret?"

"Yeah." Astrid shrugged. His tone had been…different. The way he had said it was almost bitter. Could that possibly be jealousy in his words? Astrid smiled at the idea and almost laughed. On Hiccup, jealousy was adorable. "He's a natural with the dragons. I honestly thought it's be a lot harder for him."

"How so?" Hiccup said. He stirred the fire in the forge.

"Well, kind of like how it was hard for your dad." Astrid said. She's hated to make the connection but it was the only thing she could think of. She'd expected Stoick's bullheadedness to be in Eret to.

"Ah." Hiccup said. He was still a little sore about he's father's death. Astrid hated to bring it up. "That makes sense."

"Right." Astrid said. She felt horribly guilty now. She needed to change to subject. But Hiccup beat her to it.

"You know, sometimes I wish we were back there. Spending the days in the arena and learning about dragons and worrying about Berserkers and not all this…these grownup problems." Hiccup sighed.

"Grownup problems?" Astrid smiled. "You're starting to sound like a real chief, Hiccup."

Hiccup laughed, but it was a hollow laugh. He looked over at her and if he'd been closer she'd have punch him in the arm. Sometimes, he just needed some friendly cheering up.

There was a clap of thunder and a bright flash.

"No class today?" Hiccup asked.

"Probably not." Astrid shrugged. "But who knows what Snotlout will do to those poor kids. They might be flying straight into the storm. Or, he could have called it off so give himself a day off."

Hiccup shook his head. Leaving Snotlout and Fishlegs in charge of the training had sounded like a questionable idea at the time and still did. A whistling and a limp came through the rain and moments later Gobber burst through the curtain of rain.

"Sweet baby Thor it's raining yaks and sheep out there." Gobber exclaimed once he was out of the storm. He looked back out and shook his head. He squinted through the blur, "Who's that?"

He was right - there was a dim shape moving through the rain.

"I can get this…Sven. No, Spitelout." Gobber guessed as the shape grew closer and clearer. Finally, it was Eret would came through the rain. Gobber shrugged, "Oh, well…I was close."

Eret waved a greeting and tried to shake off the rain.

"Don't worry about training today." Astrid said. "We can't fly in this weather."

"I assumed as much." Eret nodded.

"But there's always simple stuff we can go over in the arena." Astrid said. She felt Hiccup shift a little on his stool. "Like trust and stuff. You know, with you and Skullcrusher."

"Oh, right." Eret said. He didn't look eager at all.

At that moment several Vikings appeared in the rain. A roof had sprung a leak, as well as a small flood near the food stores. Hiccup was needed.

"I'd better get going." Hiccup sighed. "See you."

"Good luck." Astrid said as he was pulled out of the smithy and into the rain. She stood up as the worried Viking mob moved away. "Well, come on, we're already soaked."

Eret and Astrid made their way to the arena. Skullcrusher wasn't turned off by the weather and followed faithfully. It was empty and Astrid's assumption that Snotlout had taken the day off sounded more and more likely. By the time they were standing in the arena the rain had eased up into a drizzle.

"Alright, trust exercises." Astrid said. "I admit, Hiccup is better at this part of the training that I am."

"I think you're doing just fine." Eret shrugged. He looked around the arena. "So, is this where all the training happened?"

"Yeah, more or less." Astrid shrugged. "It happened all over but yeah, a lot of it was in here."

"Thank you, Astrid." Eret bluntly blurted out. He'd stopped wondering the arena and turned to face her.

"You're welcome, but it was nothing." Astrid shrugged.

"No, it was. You went out of your way to teach me. It would have been a horrible experience without you." Eret said with a curt nod.

"Oh, um…" Astrid said. His sudden sincerity and abrupt confession had taken her by surprise and left her without words. It felt so unlike him. "It was nothing, really. But…you're welcome."

Eret had taken the several steps that had separated them and stood within arms reach. She felt a thump somewhere inside that was as surprising as his sincerity.

"Look, I'm not used to people…doing nice things because they want to. They've always wanted something in return. It's just a change that I'm trying to get used to. I don't know how to handle all these people with good intentions." Eret shrugged. He kept his eyes on the ground.

"Wow, that must have been a rough go." Astrid said. Again, she didn't know what to respond with.

"It was, but I didn't know how bad it was until I saw a better way." Eret said. He glanced up at her.

There was a pause. He looked like he wanted to say more but didn't know how to. Astrid had seen that same face on Hiccup before - uncertainty, confusion, irritation at not being able to find the right words. Eret enclosed the small space between them and with the same fluid motion reached for her cheek with his hand. He slid his index finger along her jaw and pulled her closer with his strong grip. He kissed her - and whatever had been between them, whatever semblance of a spark, vaporized with the action.

They left the space between them small and Eret let his hand linger on her cheek.

"Did you feel anything?" Astrid asked.

Eret blinked and let his hand fall from her face and land limply back at his side. "No. You?"

Astrid shook her head. "No."

"Right." Eret took a large step back and hummed to himself. He twisted his hands together and tried his best not to look embarrassed.

"So, friends?" Astrid shrugged.

"Yeah, yeah…friends is good." Eret nodded.

"I'm sure there is something in the village that needs to be done before the rain comes back." Astrid said, pointing toward the arena's exit.

"Yeah, we should go help out." Eret said quickly.

They left the arena without words. Astrid hadn't never felt so…weird. It was like she'd walked in on something she shouldn't have seen.

The rain let up and Toothless sought Hiccup out. He found him quickly - returning from an easy job of delegating. It wasn't that Vikings were useless. They had a problem with making decisions. That was the chief's main purpose - the village decision maker.

"Hey, bud." Hiccup said. He welcomed the warm greeting from Toothless. "I've got a break, what about a quick flight before someone else grabs me, huh?"

Toothless was more than enthused. But to be safe they kept their distance from the clouds. It was never safe to provoke lightning, just in case Thor was in a bad mood. They flew over the village and Hiccup had the thought to see what Astrid could have imagined up as a trust exercise. And this way there were less Vikings to see him. The arena wasn't the popular blood bath that it used to be.

Hiccup didn't know why Astrid and Eret spending time together bothered him so. No, that was a lie. He _knew _why it bothered him. But he also knew that it shouldn't bother him. It was silly to let it bother him. _But it did_.

Toothless landed a little ways from the arena and Hiccup jumped off. He walked the short distance to the ramp but he was soon stopped dead. Something hard, cold, and heavy had been thrust into his chest. Eret had reached for Astrid and kissed her, but she did nothing. She didn't push him back, slap him, threaten to kill him, or even stomp on his foot. She stood there. She let him. She kissed him back.

Toothless nudged him and Hiccup turned from the arena. Toothless nudged him in the stomach. His green eyes were full of concern.

"Come on, bud." Hiccup said. He ushered the dragon away and climbed onto the saddle. He flew back through the increasing drizzle to the smithy. The flight seemed to take no time at all but his insides were still frozen. He collapsed into the chair beside the forge and suddenly he felt like he was on fire.

"Odin's Ghost, what's eating you?" Gobber asked. He had been hammering a white hot iron into what looked like a saddle's curved handle.

Hiccup tried several times to tell Gobber but he couldn't find the words. He groaned in irritation at himself and racked his hands through his wet hair.

"Oh, come on, now. It can't be that bad." Gobber said. He brought the hammer down on the iron.

Hiccup sighed and started from the beginning when Toothless came to find him. When he was finished with his short story Gobber was standing with his hammer hand laying on the iron and looking at him gapped mouth. It took a moment for the effect to wear off.

"What? Are you sure?" Gobber asked. His words were stunned and his brows hadn't returned since they'd flown upwards.

"Yes." Hiccup said.

"Well, what did they have to say for themselves?" Gobber demanded.

"I don't know. I didn't wait around to ask them about it." Hiccup shrugged.

"Well, before you exile them, at least talk to them." Gobber said. He brought the hammer down again.

"I can exile people?" Hiccup asked.

"Yeah, but don't get any ideas." Gobber shook his hammer hand at him.

Hiccup rubbed his face roughly. He didn't know what exactly to do. He'd never had to face _this _kind of situation before. And he'd be perfectly alright if he never had to again.

It was a few moments before the downpour began again. Through the rain a familiar figure bounded. Valka emerged through the gray curtain but she didn't linger in the smithy for long.

"Hiccup, they need their chief." Valka said. She motioned for her son to follow. Her face turned from eagerness to a frown. "Is something wrong?"

Hiccup sighed. More decisions to make. "I'll tell you about it on the way. What's happening?"

This is the scene that I built this story around. This one, and the one that is coming up. But, what's happening here is kind of weird to explain - but have you ever had a crush on someone and you start spending a lot of time with them and stuff and then one day you finally kiss them or something and you realize that there's no spark? That is what is happening between Astrid and Eret. There's just no spark.


	5. Chapter 5

Words of wisdom, the wittier the better -

Day 5

Hiccup had managed to keep himself busy all day. He didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to have to deal with it.

"Try and talk to her, Hiccup." Valka had said several times since dinner. "It might not be what it seems."

"Did this ever happen to you and Dad?" Hiccup asked.

Valka sucked in her breathe, then shook her head. "No."

"What to I even say?" Hiccup threw his arms over his head. "'Hey, Astrid, I saw you kissing Eret, what's up this that?' That's stupid."

"Maybe not so blunt?" Valka shrugged.

She was as good with these social situations as he was. Hiccup sighed. His father would probably know exactly what to say and what to do. He always did.

"Whatever you do, you can't avoid them both until you think of it." Valka said. "Gobber told me Astrid stopped by the smithy three times today to see if you were there."

Hiccup grumbled into his hands. Maybe he could take his mind off of it now if he went to the smithy. Most of the village was packing it in for the night. He stood up and mumbled a farewell to his mother and started for the door. Toothless was curled beside the fire and complained to Hiccup's back.

"You can stay here, Bud. I'm not going far. You had a long day and need the rest." Hiccup said. He patted the dragon before he left for the smithy.

The village was mostly empty, save for a few late night Vikings and dragons, and still spotted with puddles from the day before. The forge had gone cold, just a few dull ambers at the bottom, and it would take to long to heat it back up to accomplish anything. He had several designs that needed to be worked out and so he headed for his workbench.

He hadn't yet reached the door when he heard whistling. Out of curiosity he turned to see Eret passing, a few logs in his arms. Suddenly, Hiccup was filled with such a dislike that he wished the worst upon him - that he would trip, fall, and snap his neck, or a chasm would open up in the earth and swallow him whole, or a passing dragon would swoop down and snatch him up, never to be seen again.

"Oy, hiccup." Eret said.

It snapped Hiccup out of the next horrible idea and back to the smithy. He swallowed any ill-will and forced himself into a pleasant tone, "Oh, hey, Eret."

He hated the sound of his name.

"It's late to be working, don't you think?" Eret asked. He took a few steps toward the smithy.

If only the forge was hot, Hiccup thought. He shrugged, "Work's never done."

"Ah, right, right." Eret said.

There was a smugness about him that made Hiccup want to push him into the ocean and watch him drown. It was like he was rubbing the fact that he kissed his girlfriend and just wanted to rub it in.

"What are you doing?" Hiccup asked, with a little more spite that he intended.

"I'm getting some wood for the fire." Eret said, eyeing Hiccup carefully. He hadn't missed the tone of voice. But he wasn't the one to back down. "Why? Is there someone else I should be doing?"

"Maybe you should tell me." Hiccup said. Was it just him or was Eret talking with an icy undertone?

Neither one of them spoke but they relentlessly stared at each other. Eret repositioned his grip on the logs and turned away. He had only made it a few steps when Hiccup blurted out, "I know you kissed her!"

Eret stopped and turned back, ready for the confrontation. As he marched back to the smithy he spat, "So what? What are you going to do about it?"

Hiccup had never felt such rage at another human being before. Sure, he'd gotten mad, but not like this.

"Stay away from Astrid." Hiccup told him.

"Or what?" Eret shrugged. "Are you going to banish me?"

"Maybe I will." Hiccup said. It didn't sound like a bad idea.

Eret spit on the ground. "Tell me something, Hiccup. When was the last time you spent time with her? Just her. Set time from your busy life of being chief just for her? Huh?"

Hiccup opened his mouth to rebuttal - but nothing came out. When _was _the last time? He'd been busy, yes, but he's seen Astrid here and there.

"Why is she always seeking _you _out?" Eret continued. "If she were mine, I'd treat her different."

"Oh, like what? Like on of your pirate wenches?" Hiccup shouted. He balled his hands into fists.

"I'd treat her a hell of a lot better than you are." Eret said. He shoved Hiccup's shoulder and pushed him back a few steps.

Hiccup couldn't hold it in anymore. He thrust his fist toward Eret and his knuckles collided into Eret's cheek. He felt the skin give in under the impact and the bones underneath smacked against this hand. He didn't make much of a dent. Eret took a step back and put a hand to his face and glared at Hiccup.

There was a tense moment but neither would back down. Hiccup knew that Eret would easily win in a fist fight. But he wouldn't just give up. Hiccup took a step toward him and Eret started to close the gap, fists at the ready, when a sudden presence between them brought them to a halt.

"Boys!" Valka shouted. She put a calm hand on each of their chests. She looked between them. "We do not handle problems like barbarians."

Hiccup hadn't even heard her come up. She kept her hands firm and shifted her gaze toward her son, full of motherly disappointment. "This is not how a chief acts."

Hiccup backed away from his mother's hand and without looking back he left the smithy behind.

Shorter, but that's all I wanted. The dialogue between Hiccup and Eret here in this scene is what I built this entire story around. I wrote it before anything and wanted a story for it to fit in.

I know I'm kind of taking Eret's character and twisting it a little, but unlike all those internet savvy kids I have only seen the movie in theaters (in June). And that's all the basis for Eret that I've gotten.

Also, I know I rated this T but I thought that was to give me room to write. But it hadn't really been a T rating, has it? Do you all think I should downgrade the rating?

Thanks for reading!


	6. Chapter 6

Words!

Day 6

Hiccup hadn't been able to sleep. His mind was reeling between Eret and Astrid and his mother's disappointed face. All night he rolled and tossed and couldn't find comfort. But he must've fallen asleep because he was abruptly woken up by thundering footsteps on the stairs.

"What the hell, Hiccup?!" Astrid shouted.

He didn't have to roll over to see her to feel the daggers in her eyes.

The sun was coming in through his window in pale blue-orange light. It had to be just after dawn. He could his body yearning to go back to sleep that it had struggled so much for but he was already wide awake.

"What?" Hiccup asked. It was more of a complaint than an actual question of what she was talking about. He _knew _what she was angry about. He pushed himself up into a sitting position and blinked the sleep from his eyes.

"Don't you 'What?' me!" Astrid said, mimicking Hiccup's voice. She stomped and there was a fury in her eyes that Hiccup dreaded. Truly, he hadn't seen her _this _mad in a long time. And never at him. Her fists were clenched white-knuckles and she was poised to attack.

Toothless hadn't let this interruption go unnoticed. From his stone slab bed on the other side of the room he watched Astrid fume with attentive eyes. He passed an alert glance between her and Hiccup, but stayed curled on the stone.

Hiccup groaned. He pushed himself over the other side of the bed, away from Astrid, and shrugged. With the bed between them he felt a little safer. "What did you expect?"

"I had it under control!" Astrid yelled.

"You sure looked like you had it." Hiccup muttered. It was too early for this.

Astrid made a guttural roar that reminded Hiccup of an angry monstrous nightmare. She swung at the air and Hiccup was glad that he wasn't within range. That punch surely would have sent him to the floor.

"It was none of your business, Hiccup!" Astrid shouted.

"Like hell it was none of my business!" Hiccup shouted back. "If some girl kissed me you'd've aced her to bits!"

"Not before you explained yourself!" Astrid shouted. There was a subtle change of tone, "Why didn't you come to me first?"

She paused, waiting for an explanation, but when Hiccup hesitated she continued.

"I looked everywhere for you." Astrid said. "But you were too busy avoiding me and plotting your pointless revenge."

"I wasn't avoiding you." Hiccup shouted, but he lost a little steam. There _might _have been a little truth to that.

"Then where were you?" Astrid asked. She'd brought her voice down and in the absence of her anger Hiccup heard something worse. It made his chest thump and sting.

"I-I'm sorry." Hiccup mouthed. He'd expected more of a sound to come out but it ended up being a whisper.

"Your mother acted so…cold. I knew that you knew what happened. I went to find you and talk to you but you were gone. I thought that maybe Eret had said something, but he said he didn't." Astrid shook her head. She shifted her footing and grabbed onto one elbow with her hand. "I'm sorry, Hiccup. I didn't mean for anything to happen. It just…did."

"I-I saw you two at the arena. I had some time and I'd hope to find you there." Hiccup said. He twiddled his fingers and sighed, "Tell me what happened."

Astrid nodded. She sat on the bed and began to tell him what perspired that day. While she spoke she twisted her hands together and fingered the edge of her skirt. Hiccup walked around the bed, one tentative step at a time, and when he assumed it safe he sat beside her.

"And then he kissed me. But it was nothing, Hiccup. I promise." Astrid said, almost pleading. She had kept her eyes to her lap during her speech and at the end she turned to look at him.

"It still hurts." Hiccup shuffled. He knew he should say something but nothing sounded right in his head. Hiccup stood up. He took a few steps away from her and turned around. "I don't want to be mad at you, Astrid, but…I can't help it."

"I know, Hiccup. I don't blame you. I'd be made at me too." Astrid said. "But I don't want you to think that I'm…unfaithful. I love you, Hiccup, I do."

Hiccup swallowed. He wasn't used to seeing her like this. She was clearly upset but there was regret and remorse in her face and in her words that were so unfamiliar on her. Hiccup stepped in front of her and knelt down so that he was almost on eye level with her. He reached for her hands and held them in her lap.

"Astrid, you know that I love you." Hiccup said as he squeezed her hands. "And I'm sorry I've been busy. I know we haven't seen much of each other lately, and I promise to spend more time with you."

The faintest smile flashed across her lips. Relief.

"You promise me that Eret isn't a threat?" Hiccup said in a lighter tone, hoping that it would come across as a tease.

Astrid smiled and almost laughed. "You don't have to worry about him, Hiccup. I promise. Kissing him was like kissing a fish. It's nothing like you."

"How so?" Hiccup asked.

"It's…unexplainable." Astrid whispered. She spent a moment looking at him then leaned forward and Hiccup wasn't going to turn her down.

They kissed and Hiccup understood what she meant. It sent a zap through his lips and into the rest of him like lightning, turning his blood to fire, churning his heart faster, and he became aware of every move and sound that Astrid made. He cupped her cheek with his hand and they spent a moment just looking at each other.

"What do you think about a lunch date today?" Hiccup asked. "Or a picnic tomorrow at dawn over Raven Point? I hear the sunrise from there is quite a sight."

"A picnic sounds really nice." Astrid smiled.

And that's the end! Thanks for reading - I know some of your might have thought I was pulling the power couple apart by throwing Eret in the middle, but I just laughed. I'd never do that to Hiccstrid. I love them too much.

You know, in retrospect, six days might have been a little short for all this to transpire. And there was a "deleted scene" that I had written but didn't end up using because it was too mature for what this short story ended up being. It's up on Fan Fiction as it's own thing.


	7. Chapter 7

I had planned to end the story with that last chapter, but for you jtgil, I'll post one more. Then I'll call it complete.

Epilogue

At dawn, Hiccup and Astrid left for Raven's Point together. The following morning they repeated it, and the next after that. It was the perfect time of day for some quiet time. The village wasn't completely awake and hadn't begun their daily asking of the chief. The sky was most often beautiful, the early gray-orange light pushing away the night's dark and glistening off the dew, and the island was still.

They laughed and talked until the sun was fully off of the water.

Today when they came back to the village there was a list waiting for Hiccup. Astrid gave him a laugh and kissed him on the cheek as he was drug off. She was about to head home to see what the chores needed to be done when Eret stopped her.

They hadn't spoken since Hiccup had clocked him. There wasn't a bruise and in reality Astrid hadn't expected there to be one. Hiccup was a great many things but a fighter wasn't one of them.

"Look, Eret, I don't know what you thought, but…" Astrid put her hands up before he could speak.

"I know, I know." Eret said, a bit defensive. "I won't lie to you, I thought about it. I thought about it a lot. Hear me out, Astrid. I did think about it but I can't force anything that isn't there. I know you and Hiccup have a thing and I see the way you two look at each other. And yes, I wish that you would look at me that way and I wish I could look at you the same. But we don't."

"And you're okay with that?" Astrid raised a brow.

"Yes." Eret said, but shrugged. "Well, what else am I supposed to do? Follow you around for the rest of your life and hope for seconds?"

Astrid crossed her arms. She sighed. "Maybe in another life, somewhere far away, we could have been a thing. But we're here and now and we aren't meant to be, Eret. But, you know I hear Ruffnut is still one the market."

Eret shivered and pretended to thrown up.

"Oh, she isn't _that_ bad." Astrid laughed.

"Are you kidding? The girl is mad as the ocean is deep." Eret threw his arms in the air.

Astrid laughed and she was relieved when Eret grinned. It was awkward but it would fade. Still smiling, she asked, "Do we really look at each other differently?"

It was Eret's turn to laugh. "You're joking, right?"

Astrid ceased her smile and turned it straight.

"Oh, you're serious?" Eret lost his grin. "Well, yeah. I noticed it when I first saw you two. You get this weird…soft look on your face when you look at each other. It's a bit sickening, frankly. But…it's weird to admit, but you two belong together."

Astrid shrugged. Those words coming out of Eret's mouth were strange. It was like if Snotlout suddenly starting handing out compliments. And it was always awkward when other people commented on her relationship with Hiccup.

"I'll see you." Eret shrugged.

"You don't want to study dragons anymore?" Astrid asked, a bit hurt but also relieved.

"Oh, I thought I'd just join with the other kids. A few of my crew are in the class and they don't seem to mind." Eret half-smiled.

"Have fun." Astrid laughed, imagining the younger Vikings and Eret and his crew sitting on the floor of the arena while listening to one of Fishleg's lectures. She'd had the unfortunate fate of listening to a few of them. They were was interesting as a dead slug.

That evening Astrid met Hiccup on his way back home for the night.

"What's gotten in to you?" Hiccup smiled as she clung to his shoulder.

"Oh, nothing." Astrid sighed. "I've been thinking about us today. We're lucky, you know?"

"How so?" Hiccup asked.

Astrid returned his teasing grin. He knew exactly what she meant. He just wanted to hear her explain it.

"People spend their whole lives looking for someone and never find them. They die without having someone they can stand for ten minutes." Said Astrid with her head laying over on his shoulder. "And here we are."

"And here we are." Hiccup repeated, tugging her closer. He kissed her head.

"I love you." Astrid said to his ear.

"I love you, too." Hiccup smiled. There was a small clicking from the house. "Hey, you want to stay for dinner? Mom told me she was making a surprise tonight."

"Oh…you know, it's actually boiled fish night at the Great Hall, I was think that I'd just," Astrid started to say as she backed up but Hiccup and tightened his arm around her.

"Come on," Hiccup laughed. He whispered, "Please don't make me suffer alone."

Astrid laughed, but ultimately gave in. At the door Valka greeted them warmly and ushered them inside.

And…now it's done! Cliché, I know, but adorable. And now that this is done I can focus on my other projects – I have a few lined up, (wink).

Thanks for reading – see you in the next story!


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